Bayon

Timothy Tye — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 14:24:22 +0800

Bayon is a temple in the ancient Khmer city of Angkor Thom. It was the state temple of Jayavarman VII and his immediate successors. The Bayon is one of the most enigmatic structures in the world, and its design has a close symbolic relationship with the architecture of Angkor Thom itself.

Bayon is one of the many temples in Angkor that is constructed to represent Mount Meru, the center of the Hindu universe. But what makes Bayon stand out over the other temples is that it uses a mass of towers carved with stone faces to create this illusion of a stone mountain. From far away, Bayon does look like a mountain. But as you come nearer to it, the many different towers - 49 in total originally, now only 37 left - start to take shape right before your eyes. Faces, serene gazes, stare down at you. You move slightly, and more faces appear. Like a child searching for Wally, your eye search the mountain, looking for more stone faces, and finding them. This is the uniqueness of Bayon that makes it one of the most popular ruins at Angkor.

Angkor Travel Tips

Bayon